Why These Cute Little Lizards Are Changing Colors to Survive

Nov. 30, 2016 - Unlike a chameleon, a whiptail lizard can’t just change its own color to match its surroundings. But over many generations, evolution has changed the color of an entire population of these little reptiles. As Bree Rosenblum of the University of California Berkeley explains, natural selection has given this group of lizards a lighter shade to blend into their home in White Sands National Monument. This adaptation happened very quickly in geologic terms, because the sand dunes are only about 10,000 years old.Video courtesy National Science Foundation

Why These Cute Little Lizards Are Changing Colors to Survive

Nov. 30, 2016 - Unlike a chameleon, a whiptail lizard can’t just change its own color to match its surroundings. But over many generations, evolution has changed the color of an entire population of these little reptiles. As Bree Rosenblum of the University of California Berkeley explains, natural selection has given this group of lizards a lighter shade to blend into their home in White Sands National Monument. This adaptation happened very quickly in geologic terms, because the sand dunes are only about 10,000 years old.Video courtesy National Science Foundation